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An Informational Interview with an Environmental Health Officer

By Ali E.

During these past few weeks at my internship, I’ve met a handful of different environmental health officers (EHOs) who all have varying interests, backgrounds, and stories. I’ve learned the different ways they ended up within the Office of Environmental Health in the Indian Health Service, and where they see themselves going in the future. Of all these people, there was one in particular who had a really interesting career path and who participated in an informational interview with me.

Learning how to conduct a pool survey

I met Kate a few weeks into my internship because she’s the EHO within our district with the most experience with pools. Because my project for the summer dealt with pools, I was able to go visit her field office for a few days. I learned the ins and outs of pool surveys, including debriefing with the pool operators, checking safety equipment, testing pool chemical levels, checking equipment maintenance, checking for proper documentation and chemical use, and above all how to give recommendations on how to improve the facility. Aside from learning how to properly and thoroughly conduct a pool survey, I learned a lot about Kate’s history that led her to where she is today.

Kate got her bachelor’s degree in exercise sport science because she was an athlete and loved sports and considered becoming an OT. She signed up for a Master of Public Administration program, but after a year changed to environmental health. Like me, she kind of stumbled unknowingly into environmental health because she liked the electives it offered.

The interesting part of Kate’s educational background is that she did an online master’s program that she spread out over the course of six years, which allowed her to travel around the world and work in various jobs while completing her degree. Prior to this summer, I hadn’t met a lot of people who had done their master’s degrees online, but I learned about the many advantages, as well as disadvantages, to going the online route. Kate is currently looking at getting a graduate certificate in epidemiology because her long-term goal is to get her doctorate and to work abroad, potentially with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, doing environmental health work. I didn’t know that certificates existed before meeting Kate, and she showed me that there are a multitude of ways to go about education at the graduate level, and that there is plenty of time to do so. I personally want to take some time off before pursuing a master’s to work in different settings to find my niche. Kate showed me that it isn’t necessary to rush through your education just to get a degree, but that it’s more valuable to take time to find what you’re really passionate about.

My Internship with the Indian Health Service

By Ali E.

This summer I’m completing my internship with the Office of Environmental Health and Engineering with the Indian Health Service. The Indian Health Service is an agency within the Department of Health and Human Services that supplies health care services to federally recognized tribes. I’m stationed in a field office in Parker, AZ, which is located in the western side of the state. Over the course of the summer, I’m going to assist two Environmental Health Officers (EHOs) in my office with everything that they have on their plate, as well as work on my personal project regarding pool inspections. Our field office covers a large geographical area that serves five different tribes scattered throughout western Arizona, eastern California, and southern Nevada. I also have the opportunity to travel to another field office and the district office to work with EHOs that have different specializations and work with different tribes.

I’m really excited for the work I’m going to do this summer because the Environmental Health department tackles almost everything that a standard health department would manage. Looking over my work plan for the summer, I’m going to be getting exposure to vector control, food safety, injury prevention, and institutional health. I know that I want to continue on to complete a master’s degree, but I’m unsure about what specific area of Environmental Health I want to specialize in. I’m hoping that this internship will help me determine what areas of Environmental Health I want to pursue, as well as give me a better idea of what I want in a long term career.

As with anything new, it’s hard to come in to a brand new setting not knowing what your role is going to be, how you’re going to fit into the existing dynamics, and if the knowledge you already have is going to be sufficient. But from my first week and a half I can attest that as long as you are enthusiastic, hardworking, and willing to put in effort and ask questions, that you can be successful in any new setting.

About This Blog

Welcome to the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences' Career and Internship Blog. In this blog you can see what our students are up to in their jobs and internships, read about different career related subjects, and learn more about careers in Environmental and Occupational Health.